Long Branch

Long Branch is a beachside city in Monmouth County, New Jersey. Named for its location along a branch of the Shrewsbury River, Long Branch was a beach resort town in the late 18th century, and its "Seven Presidents Park" was named after the visits of Presidents Chester A. Arthur, James A. Garfield, Ulysses S. Grant, Benjamin Harrison, Rutherford B. Hayes, William McKinley, and Woodrow Wilson to the area; the Episcopalian "Church of the Presidents" was also named for the seven presidents, all of whom worshipped there. Incorporated as a commission on 11 April 1867, Long Branch was incorporated as a city on 8 April 1903.

In the early 20th century, Irish, Italian, and Jewish immigrants settled in Long Branch, and, during the 1930s, the city used government policies to enforce racial segregation against African-Americans at local beaches. By the 1950s, Long Branch had developed new residential spots and housing to make room for the growing population, and many of the area's former farms were turned into residential suburbs. Long Branch lost much of its activity as a theater spot during the early 20th century, and the opening of the Garden State Parkway in the mid-1950s allowed shore visitors to access points further south, adding to the decline of the city. The 1960s race riots in Asbury Park led to whites fleeing the shore cities for suburban towns west of the beach, and, decades later, more neglected parts of the city were condemned and redeveloped. The city continued to be a popular resort area during the 2000s, with many New Yorkers or Philadelphians escpaing their cities to enjoy Long Branch's beaches.

In 2016, Long Branch had a population of 30,763 people. Unlike other parts of the Jersey Shore region, and possibly owing to its large population of African-American and Hispanic minorities, Long Branch was a Democratic Party enclave within a Republican Party-supporting region, voting for Barack Obama in both 2008 and 2012.